Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh left Moscow for home today after concluding a three-day visit to Russia. During the visit he attended the 12th annual Indo-Russian summit and witnessed inking of five agreements, including one for technical assistance in joint production of 42 more frontline Sukhoi-MKI 30 jets.
Dr. Singh, who held talks with President Dmitry Medvedev, cleared the uncertainty over the Kudankulam nuclear power project and said the first unit of the plant would be operationalised in a couple of weeks. The two countries reiterated their commitment to further long-term joint collaboration in the civilian nuclear energy sector as well as in the hydrocarbon sector.
In a joint statement issued after the talks, India and Russia said there was no justification for any act of terrorism and all nations need to combine efforts to eradicate the menace. They condemned in strong terms the existence of safe havens of terrorism, asserting that states that aid, abet or shelter terrorists are as guilty for such acts as their perpetrators.
Both sides agreed that international terrorism is a threat to peace and security, violates human rights and is a crime against humanity. Expressing concern over the illicit drug trafficking becoming one of the main financial sources of international terrorism, the two sides stressed on the importance of joint bilateral and multilateral efforts in the fight against it and piracy.
During the Summit talks with the Ruissian President, the Prime Minister raised the issue of delay in the delivery Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier to the Indian Navy, saying it was important for India that the ship arrives in time.
This was disclosed by Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai while briefing the media persons after the talks. He said both the leaders were unanimous that they would take necessary action to ensure that there was no further delay in the delivery of the aircraft carrier to be re-named 'INS Vikramaditya.
Russia also backed India's bid for a permanent seat in an expanded UN Security Council as well as its aspirations to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), while Dr. Singh welcomed Moscow's entry to the WTO.
